Organic research centre receives funding

A new organic research centre in Quebec is receiving $13 million to get operational.

The Platform for Innovation in Organic Agriculture will be a multi-purpose centre focused on research and development needs expressed by over 30 organic agriculture organization, states the federal government in a news release. That includes working towards solutions to technical and agronomic problems. The facility is located in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, just east of Montreal.

“The Quebec government is proud to support this large-scale project that will stimulate research and development in organic crop production and further the transfer of knowledge, whether information, research results, technical advice or training,” says Sam Hamad, Quebec Minister of Economic Development, Innovation and Export.

The financial contribution of the partners involved in this project is broken down as follows:

– $8,372,109 from the Quebec Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and Export under the Research Assistance Program, phase 2, Support for Research Infrastructure Funding, $7,512,109 for the infrastructure and equipment and $860,000 to defray the additional operating and maintenance expenses

– $2,170,000 from AgriFlexibility by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

– $1,200,000 granted by the Quebec Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food as a contribution towards the initiative under AgriFlexibility

– $1,365,234 from the Research and Development Institute for the Agri-Environment

– $25,000 advanced by the Quebec Wildlife Foundation.

“The spin-offs from the Platform will be beneficial for the organic sector and will flow over into the other sectors,” says Pierre Corbeil, Quebec’s minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food . “In fact, applying the research findings from an integrated management perspective and in the area of organic agriculture will also benefit traditional companies that wish to reduce the environmental impact of their activities.”